Photo via The Sydney Morning Herald

Netanyahu’s policies face the chop as new parliament sworn in

Read the original at The Sydney Morning Herald ↗
Cite

Lidman, M. (2026, November 11). Netanyahu’s policies face the chop as new parliament sworn in. The Sydney Morning Herald. https://www.smh.com.au/world/middle-east/netanyahu-s-policies-face-the-chop-as-new-parliament-sworn-in-20261111-p61da2.html?ref=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_source=rss_feed

Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.

The Sydney Morning Herald · collected 2026-11-11 · by Melanie Lidman

Quick Summary

Gadi Eisenkot, tasked with forming Israel’s new government following Benjamin Netanyahu’s loss of majority support, pledged to reverse many of Netanyahu’s policies as the newly elected parliament was sworn in on Tuesday. The opposition now holds a clear majority in the Knesset and has introduced bills targeting Netanyahu’s tenure, including an inquiry into Hamas attacks and term limits for prime ministers. Netanyahu continues to challenge the election results, claiming Arab-led parties “stole” the elections, while Eisenkot emphasizes forming a government that represents all Israelis.
Written by AI on 2026-11-11, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

As of November 2026, Benjamin Netanyahu remains the outgoing Israeli prime minister after inconclusive elections failed to produce a clear majority for any coalition. The Joint List, an Arab-Israeli party led by Yousef Jabareen and Mansour Abbas, has offered to back an opposition-led government but will not join it directly. This stance could determine whether Netanyahu or his rival Gadi Eisenkot forms the next government. Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, urged political parties to engage with open hearts to avoid another election, emphasizing that forming a new government is critical for national security and stability.

The Joint List's decision carries significant weight due to increased voter support among Arab-Israeli communities, which could shift power dynamics in the Knesset. Following the swearing-in of the new parliament on November 10, both Netanyahu and Eisenkot called for establishing a national government amid an ongoing deadlock. Despite Netanyahu’s continued leadership, Eisenkot has quickly moved to challenge his legacy by targeting policies associated with the outgoing administration.

The potential coalition formation process could extend into months, depending on negotiations between various factions, including Arab-Israeli lawmakers who hold key votes in determining the next prime minister.

Written for “New Israeli Parliament Sworn In” on 2026-11-11, grounded in this article and the 100 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The article's own words the score was based on. Each is quoted verbatim and was checked against the article text before being stored, so you can find it in the original.
Reading Leans left (beta estimate) Confidence high
Leaning: leans left for article 144006 (high confidence, 2 verified quotes) · logged 2026-11-11

Story

New Israeli Parliament Sworn In
Politics · 101 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads leans left and hedges 24% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
The Hindu
Hedges 1 of 25 claims Outlet record 78/100
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
34
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
24%
8 of 34 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
Leans left
of the writing, not the subject · beta estimate
Publisher signals
61/100
The Sydney Morning Herald's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
101
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-11-11 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

The Sydney Morning Herald · 6714 article(s) · 15 correction(s) detected
Running correction rate · 15 correction(s)

Who wrote this

Melanie Lidman
8 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction
Eisenkot, a former military chief, has up to six weeks to form a government that would end the tenure of Israel’s longest-serving prime minister.
By casting doubt on the vote, Netanyahu appears to be trying to block any potential alliance in the opposition with the Arab parties that could force him from office.
Although the town remains staunchly conservative, there are rumblings of displeasure with Netanyahu’s handling of the latest war against the militant group Hezbollah, and that could bode poorly for him in Israel’s election Tuesday.
In southern Israel, families will mourn at intersections, bomb shelters, and the site of a music festival that Hamas-led militants overran three years ago in the deadliest attack against Israel.
In his first public comments about the incident, Trump hinted there could be a link when asked by reporters at the White House whether he had been briefed about any connection between the co-pilot and Tehran.
COGAT, Israel’s military body that oversees civil issues in the West Bank, acknowledged the water was diverted “without authorization” and said it would investigate.
Also by Melanie Lidman
Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.
All 8 articles by Melanie Lidman →

Topics

Arab Hamas Israel Jewish Knesset

Subjects

Netanyahu PERSON · 13× Eisenkot PERSON · 11× Israel GPE · 5× Knesset ORG · 5× Arab NORP · 3× Israeli NORP · 3× Jewish NORP · 3× Hamas ORG · 2× Gadi Eisenkot PERSON · 1× Tel Aviv GPE · 1×

Narrative

They include launching an official government-led inquiry into the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attacks, setting term limits on the position of prime minister, and overturning changes the outgoing Netanyahu-led government made to limit the powers of the judiciary.
framing: mixed · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-11-11
Eisenkot, a former military chief, has up to six weeks to form a government that would end the tenure of Israel’s longest-serving prime minister.
2026-11-11 · The Sydney Morning Herald
Netanyahu’s policies face the chop as new parliament sworn in · mixed framing

Claims (34 extracted, 8 hedged)

Gadi Eisenkot, the politician tasked with forming a new Israeli government, pledged on Tuesday to reverse many of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s policies as the new parliament was sworn in. asserted
parliament → task → policies
The pledge sets the stage for a consequential month of legislative action and coalition negotiations. asserted
pledge → set → action
Eisenkot, a former military chief, has up to six weeks to form a government that would end the tenure of Israel’s longest-serving prime minister. asserted
that → have → minister
While it remains unclear whether Eisenkot will be able to forge a coalition government, the new Knesset can enact legislation in the meantime. uncertain
Knesset → remain → meantime
Netanyahu’s opponents now control a solid majority in parliament. asserted
opponents → control → parliament
Eisenkot’s bloc introduced a series of bills at the start of the legislative session that target Netanyahu and his policies. asserted
that → introduce → Netanyahu
They include launching an official government-led inquiry into the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attacks, setting term limits on the position of prime minister, and overturning changes the outgoing Netanyahu-led government made to limit the powers of the judiciary. asserted
government → include → judiciary
It was not immediately clear how quickly or far those bills would advance in the weeks ahead. asserted
bills → advance → weeks
Eisenkot, a former general, who campaigned as a no-nonsense straight shooter, reiterated that his goal was a government that all Israelis could trust, not one that represents only certain factions. uncertain
that → campaign → factions
“We will act for all citizens of Israel, those who voted for us and those who did not, out of deep commitment,” Eisenkot said ahead of the Knesset swearing-in ceremony. asserted
Eisenkot → act → ceremony
Netanyahu has sought to undermine the certified election results after his bloc fell short of a majority. asserted
bloc → seek → majority
He has repeated unsubstantiated claims that Arab-led parties “stole” the elections. uncertain
parties → repeat → elections
In a speech following Tuesday’s ceremony, Netanyahu reiterated his claim that Arab politicians, who represent a minority comprising 20 per cent of Israel’s population, cannot be trusted. uncertain
who → follow → population
He attacked Jewish opposition leaders who have signalled a willingness to partner with Arab parties to form a government. asserted
who → attack → government
Eisenkot has left that possibility open if the parties meet several conditions, including accepting Israel’s identity as a Jewish state and declaring Hamas a terrorist group. asserted
Hamas → leave → state
“I ask you: Are you prepared to be dependent on those whose goal is the destruction of the Jewish state?” Netanyahu said. asserted
Netanyahu → ask → state
Push for a new speaker Eisenkot said Netanyahu’s speech was “divisive” and “hate-filled,” adding: “I am now even more convinced that he is unfit to remain in office for even one more minute.” asserted
he → push → minute
He later said he had cancelled a meeting with Netanyahu’s Likud party planned for Wednesday because of the speech. asserted
he → say → speech
Eisenkot’s bloc triggered a process on Tuesday to install a new parliamentary speaker as they kicked off work on their legislative agenda. asserted
they → trigger → agenda
The majority of members submitted signatures calling for the ousting of the current Netanyahu-backed speaker, Amir Ohana, in the first step towards a vote on his replacement. asserted
majority → submit → replacement
The vote can take place even before a coalition government is in place. asserted
government → take → place
The speaker determines what bills the Knesset will take up, meaning one picked from among the Eisenkot-led opposition parties could propel their legislative agenda forward. uncertain
one → determine → agenda
The opposition nominated Matan Kahana, a senior member of Eisenkot’s Yashar party, for the job. asserted
opposition → nominate → job
A vote to appoint him speaker could come as early as this week. uncertain
vote → appoint → week
The swearing-in of the new Knesset ushered in an unusual transitional period in Israeli politics – Netanyahu and his cabinet remain in power, while the new lawmakers can introduce legislation. asserted
lawmakers → usher → legislation
Meanwhile, Eisenkot will meet with party leaders as he works to build a coalition that would be likely to make him prime minister. asserted
him → meet → coalition
If he fails, Israeli President Isaac Herzog is expected to give Netanyahu the next opportunity to form a government. asserted
Herzog → fail → government
As caretaker prime minister, Netanyahu faces court-imposed limits on his powers. asserted
Netanyahu → face → powers
But he can still pursue appointments and could try to block new legislation. uncertain
he → pursue → legislation
He retains full authority over national security, including the military. asserted
He → retain → military
Netanyahu has argued that Jewish-led parties should form a unity government to counter the threat of an Iranian attack. asserted
parties → argue → attack
He renewed that call Tuesday, urging them to “set aside all other considerations,” and said Israel should work to topple the Iranian government. asserted
Israel → renew → government
A governing coalition without Netanyahu could leave him politically vulnerable as he faces an ongoing corruption trial and possible findings of security failures in the lead-up to the October 7 attacks. uncertain
he → govern → attacks
AP Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on what’s making headlines around the world. asserted
what → get → world
Give feedback · no sign-in needed

No sign-in needed for now. Your note is sent without a name, so it cannot be answered.

History Support